Carl W. Kenney II is an award winning columnist and novelist. He is committed to engaging readers into a meaningful discussion related to matters that impact faith and society. He grapples with pondering the impact faith has on public space while seeking to understand how public space both hinders and enhances the walk of faith.

Wednesday, September 4, 2013

When you get to the pearly gates you want to be met by
the best. According to Makeda
Pennycooke, executive pastor of operations atCharlotte’s Freedom House Church, the best are white people.

Pennycooke, who is black, sent an email to church volunteers
stating "first impressions matter" and that the congregation wanted
"the best of the best on the front doors."

The staff member at the North Carolina church
requested that “only white people” serve as greeters.

"We are continuing to work to bring our racial
demographic pendulum back to mid-line," she continued in the email.
"So we would like to ask that only white people be on the front
doors."

WBTV reported the story after Carmen Thomas, a member
at the church, approached the station out of outrage. Thomas told WBTV
Pennycooke wants to attract white people to the church.

"Freedom House believes in a diverse relationship
within its membership, reflecting the larger community in which the church
resides, doing life together as a church representative of everyone --
culturally, ethnically, economically, and generationally,” officials at the
church told WBTV.

The church website reveals only two blacks on staff –
Pennycooke and Tracie Frank, the communications director.The desire for diversity is not reflected in
the church staff.The recommendation for
“white only” greeters speaks volumes related to the goal in limiting black
attendance.

Most troubling is how Pennycooke was used to
communicate the “white only” policy.Her
comments reflect a level of self-hatred common among black people who serve in
positions of power on a predominately white staff.Pennycooke seemingly has issues with her own
race.

Central in the discussion regarding Freedom House are
the underlying messages that promote an agenda antithetical to authentic
diversity.The church is led by Troy and
Penny Maxwell.The Maxwell’s left
Richmond, Virginia to start the Charlotte church in 2002. There’s nothing on
the church website to support the church interest in diversity.The lack of black staff and local efforts to
promote unity give the impression that this church isn’t interested in black
membership.

The sad part is how Pennycooke is used as the scapegoat.She is not the pastor of the church.Her role is an administrative function.Troy and Penny Maxwell haven’t spoken in
defense of Pennycooke.They have
apologized, but one is left believing Pennycooke was used to promote an agenda
that markets the church as one for “white people”.

The problem is with her being on staff.How can she stay given an email she was
probably forced to send?Do you really
believe she did so without orders from above?

This story gained traction because Pennycooke is
black.The message from most accounts
has been about a black pastor informing membership that “only white” people can
serve as greeters.The assumption is
that Pennycooke holds a significant leadership position in the church.You’re left thinking this is a black
congregation hoping to land more white members.

Not true.This
is an overwhelming white congregation using a black woman on staff to keep
other blacks away.This church isn’t
willing to share leadership with blacks.The truth is they have no obligation to do so.I have no problem with their desire to keep
black people away.

My problem is with people who pretend they desire
diversity when they don’t.Yes, it would
be more like Jesus to open the doors to all people, but are they ready for what
happens when blacks show up in large numbers.

This is another example of a black person being used
to promote a white agenda.

2 comments:

Need a clarification. You said that "this is an overwhelming white congregation," but Carmen Thomas (the complaining church member) said in her TV interview that the congregation was more black than white.

Plus, you wrote that "this church isn't willing to share leadership with blacks," but Ms. Pennycooke IS in a position of leadership as executive pastor of operations.

Either way, this was more than a pubic relations faux pas. The white main pastor has courted an interracial congregation from the church's inception. Why this current email requesting white greeters? It makes no sense if the congregation was mainly white (as you say), but more so if the congregation was tilting to a black majority (as Ms. Thomas says), and the pastor felt economically threatened in some way.

I lay the blame squarely upon the shoulders of Makeda Pennycooke. If a person has sufficient racial pride there is no way that anyone else can persuade him or her to speak ill against his or her own race such as this statement infers. There is no way that the Christian religion can be interpreted as believing that Caucasians are the "best of the best" -- on WHAT RATIONALE????? This image of Pennycooke shows her to appear to be an intelligent individual who could not be duped into backing such a stupid statement without full complicity, So the blame -- which should be on the white congregation and leaders -- still remains firmly on her shoulders. The lesson, young people, do not allow being around the majority population overshadow your common sense and your racial pride. It is tantament to allowing someone to "talk about your Momma!" Unbelieveable! Unconscionable! Someone hide this person from our sight!

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Carl W. Kenney II

Carl was named the best serious columnist of 2011 by the North Carolina Press Association for his work with the News & Observer's community paper The Durham News and in 2016 by the Missouri Press Association for his columns in the Columbia Missourian. He is a columnist with the News & Observer and Co-Executive Producer of "God of the Oppressed" an upcoming documentary film on black liberation theology. He is a former Adjunct Professor at the University of Missouri - School of Journalism and Adjunct Instructor at Duke University, the Center for Documentary Studies. He received his Bachelor’s degree in Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He furthered his education at Duke University and attained a Master of Divinity. He was named a Fellow in Pastoral Leadership Development at the Princeton Theological Seminary on May 14, 2005. He is a freelance writer with his commentary appearing in The Washington Post, Religious News Services,The Independent Weekly and The Durham Herald-Sun. Carl is the author of two novels: “Preacha’ Man” and the sequel “Backslide”.
He has led congregations in Missouri and North Carolina